Bernard Walter

Tag: Self-Reflection

  • April 9, 2024

    I’m finding myself growing increasingly impatient, wanting things to get done, to make progress. I got angry with one of my classes today because only one person completed the homework. I find myself standing in the middle of the library just turning circles in the same spot, trying to figure out how things got so…

  • April 3, 2024

    Whatever I’m working on ends up on my desk, as if my mind is offloading whatever it is carrying onto it. As the days pass, there’s less space for me to write my morning pages, rest my elbow, and put a cat who’s come to visit me. I’ll eventually hit a tipping point and stop…

  • February 21, 2024

    Unclear. I was reading a math textbook today. It took me a few pages to realise that I didn’t retain any of what I was reading. The same thing happened last night when I was looking up the difference between “who” and “whom.”

  • February 16, 2024

    I was sweating a fair bit. Through the window, I could see naked men walking through the hallway from the change rooms to the showers, and then back again. Staring at the grain of the wood lining the walls, I was convinced it was cedar. I was sitting on the top-level bench in the sauna…

  • February 7, 2024

    I happened to catch an episode of Ideas on the radio yesterday. The program had already started, and I got out of the car before it ended but what I heard was really interesting.

  • October 15, 2023

    While walking to my haircut appointment this afternoon, I realised that I don’t actually listen to the words in songs. It’s been a while since I’ve taken a walk with my headphones on, something I love to do, so I haven’t been paying such close attention to what I’ve been listening to. Chelsea Cutler has…

  • October 10, 2023

    I learned something about myself today that I already knew. See, I was given the day to clean a room of the library. Just the one room. It was a mess, filled with loose cables and broken computers. Spending the day working on just the one task reminded me of how I work best when…

  • September 28, 2023

    It happened again today. Somebody told me that the reason people keep asking me for help is because I keep saying, “Yes”. I was probably complaining about feeling overwhelmed or simply too busy.

  • September 15, 2023

    Do you see yourself as a leader? This is a writing prompt. A couple of years ago, I had a vice-principal who was encouraging me to take my principal qualifications. She told me that I have leadership qualities, that I like to move conversations and ideas forward. I appreciate what she said but I don’t…

  • September 13, 2023

    I think today was the sixth day of school. Already, I’m muttering under my breath, swearing out loud when I think no one is around, and annoyed with students’ behaviour. I will say that I do really enjoy wearing the tongueless shoes I got in the summer. They’re rather comfortable.

  • September 5, 2023

    Today was the first day of school. It was a good day, despite the scorching heat. Within 20 minutes of entering the building, I was dripping with sweat. It continued like that throughout most of the day. Luckily, the library has air conditioning. The classrooms, however, do not.

  • August 1, 2023

    August 1, 2023

    I swam in the Atlantic Ocean today for the first time. Yesterday, we dipped our feet in but today we went all in. It’s quite salty.